Chapter 1 of The White Devil is here in full — 403 sentences across 81 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
A keeper or guardian of historical records and memories.
Chapter I
Chapter 1 of The White Devil is here in full — 403 sentences across 81 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
ISABELLA, Sister to FRANCISCO DE MEDICI, and Wife to BRACHIANO. VITTORIA COROMBONA, a Venetian Lady; first married to CAMILLO, afterwards to BRACHIANO. CORNELIA, Mother to VITTORIA, FLAMINEO, and MARCELLO. ZANCHE, a Moor, Servant to VITTORIA. Ambassadors, Courtiers, Lawyers, Officers, Physicians, Conjurer, Armourer, Attendants.
Chapter 1 of The White Devil is here in full — 403 sentences across 81 reading sections, with audio for every sentence and word.
Reading 6/80 · 5 reading units · Lines 26–30
These definitions explain words found in the current reading and keep every example grounded in its original sentence.
Oxford-style entry order: headword, part of speech, US IPA, concise definition, contextual example, and audio.
plural of “ambassador” — a diplomat of the highest rank; accredited as representative from one country to another
From this reading “Ambassadors, Courtiers, Lawyers, Officers, Physicians, Conjurer, Armourer, Attendants.”
someone who performs magic tricks to amuse an audience
From this reading “Ambassadors, Courtiers, Lawyers, Officers, Physicians, Conjurer, Armourer, Attendants.”
plural of “courtier” — an attendant at the court of a sovereign
From this reading “Ambassadors, Courtiers, Lawyers, Officers, Physicians, Conjurer, Armourer, Attendants.”
the queen of Castile whose marriage to Ferdinand of Aragon in 1469 marked the beginning of the modern state of Spain; they instituted the Spanish Inquisition in 1478 and sponsored the voyages of Christopher Columbus in 1492 (1451-1504)
From this reading “ISABELLA, Sister to FRANCISCO DE MEDICI, and Wife to BRACHIANO.”
aristocratic Italian family of powerful merchants and bankers who ruled Florence in the 15th century
From this reading “ISABELLA, Sister to FRANCISCO DE MEDICI, and Wife to BRACHIANO.”
secure in or as if in a berth or dock
From this reading “ZANCHE, a Moor, Servant to VITTORIA.”
plural of “physician” — a licensed medical practitioner
From this reading “Ambassadors, Courtiers, Lawyers, Officers, Physicians, Conjurer, Armourer, Attendants.”
a resident of Venice
From this reading “VITTORIA COROMBONA, a Venetian Lady; first married to CAMILLO, afterwards to BRACHIANO.”
Every word in these five lines is listed here, and every one of them can be played on its own.
Dictionary details are shown only when verified; these are not licensed Oxford entries.
used before a singular noun to mean one of a group, when it is not a particular one
From this reading VITTORIA COROMBONA, a Venetian Lady; first married to CAMILLO, afterwards to BRACHIANO.
happening at a time subsequent to a reference time
From this reading VITTORIA COROMBONA, a Venetian Lady; first married to CAMILLO, afterwards to BRACHIANO.
plural of “ambassador” — a diplomat of the highest rank; accredited as representative from one country to another
From this reading Ambassadors, Courtiers, Lawyers, Officers, Physicians, Conjurer, Armourer, Attendants.
used to join words or parts of a sentence that go together
From this reading ISABELLA, Sister to FRANCISCO DE MEDICI, and Wife to BRACHIANO.
a worker skilled in making armor or arms
From this reading Ambassadors, Courtiers, Lawyers, Officers, Physicians, Conjurer, Armourer, Attendants.
plural of “attendant” — someone who waits on or tends to or attends to the needs of another
From this reading Ambassadors, Courtiers, Lawyers, Officers, Physicians, Conjurer, Armourer, Attendants.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading ISABELLA, Sister to FRANCISCO DE MEDICI, and Wife to BRACHIANO.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading VITTORIA COROMBONA, a Venetian Lady; first married to CAMILLO, afterwards to BRACHIANO.
someone who performs magic tricks to amuse an audience
From this reading Ambassadors, Courtiers, Lawyers, Officers, Physicians, Conjurer, Armourer, Attendants.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading CORNELIA, Mother to VITTORIA, FLAMINEO, and MARCELLO.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading VITTORIA COROMBONA, a Venetian Lady; first married to CAMILLO, afterwards to BRACHIANO.
plural of “courtier” — an attendant at the court of a sovereign
From this reading Ambassadors, Courtiers, Lawyers, Officers, Physicians, Conjurer, Armourer, Attendants.
a Mid-Atlantic state; one of the original 13 colonies
From this reading ISABELLA, Sister to FRANCISCO DE MEDICI, and Wife to BRACHIANO.
preceding all others in time or space or degree
From this reading VITTORIA COROMBONA, a Venetian Lady; first married to CAMILLO, afterwards to BRACHIANO.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading CORNELIA, Mother to VITTORIA, FLAMINEO, and MARCELLO.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading ISABELLA, Sister to FRANCISCO DE MEDICI, and Wife to BRACHIANO.
the queen of Castile whose marriage to Ferdinand of Aragon in 1469 marked the beginning of the modern state of Spain; they instituted the Spanish Inquisition in 1478 and sponsored the voyages of Christopher Columbus in 1492 (1451-1504)
From this reading ISABELLA, Sister to FRANCISCO DE MEDICI, and Wife to BRACHIANO.
a polite name for any woman
From this reading VITTORIA COROMBONA, a Venetian Lady; first married to CAMILLO, afterwards to BRACHIANO.
plural of “lawyer” — a professional person authorized to practice law; conducts lawsuits or gives legal advice
From this reading Ambassadors, Courtiers, Lawyers, Officers, Physicians, Conjurer, Armourer, Attendants.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading CORNELIA, Mother to VITTORIA, FLAMINEO, and MARCELLO.
joined in matrimony
From this reading VITTORIA COROMBONA, a Venetian Lady; first married to CAMILLO, afterwards to BRACHIANO.
aristocratic Italian family of powerful merchants and bankers who ruled Florence in the 15th century
From this reading ISABELLA, Sister to FRANCISCO DE MEDICI, and Wife to BRACHIANO.
secure in or as if in a berth or dock
From this reading ZANCHE, a Moor, Servant to VITTORIA.
a woman who has given birth to a child (also used as a term of address to your mother)
From this reading CORNELIA, Mother to VITTORIA, FLAMINEO, and MARCELLO.
plural of “officer” — any person in the armed services who holds a position of authority or command
From this reading Ambassadors, Courtiers, Lawyers, Officers, Physicians, Conjurer, Armourer, Attendants.
plural of “physician” — a licensed medical practitioner
From this reading Ambassadors, Courtiers, Lawyers, Officers, Physicians, Conjurer, Armourer, Attendants.
a person working in the service of another (especially in the household)
From this reading ZANCHE, a Moor, Servant to VITTORIA.
a female person who has the same parents as another person
From this reading ISABELLA, Sister to FRANCISCO DE MEDICI, and Wife to BRACHIANO.
used before the base form of a verb to make the infinitive
From this reading ISABELLA, Sister to FRANCISCO DE MEDICI, and Wife to BRACHIANO.
a resident of Venice
From this reading VITTORIA COROMBONA, a Venetian Lady; first married to CAMILLO, afterwards to BRACHIANO.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading VITTORIA COROMBONA, a Venetian Lady; first married to CAMILLO, afterwards to BRACHIANO.
a married woman; a man's partner in marriage
From this reading ISABELLA, Sister to FRANCISCO DE MEDICI, and Wife to BRACHIANO.
Dictionary entry pending editorial verification. Tap Listen to hear the word.
From this reading ZANCHE, a Moor, Servant to VITTORIA.
Chapter 1 of The White Devil by John Webster holds 403 sentences, grouped into 81 reading sections of at most 5 sentences. The text is the source edition, unabridged, and the chapter records which sentences cover which part of the work so that nothing is dropped. Every word can be tapped for its pronunciation and dictionary entry.
Chapter 1 holds 403 sentences of The White Devil, unabridged, divided into 81 reading sections.
This page carries chapter 1 of The White Devil by John Webster exactly as it stands in the source edition, without abridgement. It runs to 403 sentences, grouped into 81 sections of at most 5 sentences so that a reader can take the chapter in steady, finishable pieces. The chapter also stores a coverage record mapping every one of its sentences to a part of the work, which is how the edition demonstrates that no line was dropped.
Work through the 81 sections in order, replaying any sentence and tapping unfamiliar words for their entries.
Each of the 81 sections in this chapter is short enough to read once, hear once, and then re-read with the vocabulary in view. Tapping a word plays it alone and opens its dictionary entry with IPA, part of speech and meaning, so the reader is never forced to guess a pronunciation from spelling. Working section by section keeps a long chapter from becoming an undifferentiated wall of text, which is the usual reason a reader abandons a work of this period.
Yes — every sentence and every individual word in chapter 1 can be played aloud in United States English.
Audio covers the whole chapter: any sentence can be played, and any single word within it can be played on its own. The voice uses United States English. For a work of this period that matters, because spelling is an unreliable guide to pronunciation for vocabulary that has fallen out of daily use, and a learner who guesses wrong tends to keep the error. Hearing the word in its own sentence, and then alone, settles it.
Common questions about reading The White Devil by John Webster on this page, its source edition and its audio.
Yes. All 3118 sentences of Project Gutenberg eBook #12915 are kept, with a record of which sentences cover which part.
Project Gutenberg eBook #12915, unabridged. The Project Gutenberg header, footer and licence are removed.
About 259 minutes of reading across 624 sections of 5 sentences each, at an unhurried pace.
How to work through The White Devil section by section, using the audio and the tap-to-define vocabulary.
Choose one of the 8 chapters of The White Devil to begin.
Each section holds 5 sentences; read it once through.
Play the section aloud, then tap any unfamiliar word for its entry.
Words and structures a reader meets early in The White Devil, each tappable for pronunciation and meaning.
